LETTERS: NORTH COUNTY, APRIL 30, 2013

Effinger strikes a nerve

I see this is the week for the U-T to attack the 4,000 residents of the Escondido Country Club area. Kirk Effinger wrote an uninformed hit piece (“Really? A crusade to save the Escondido Country Club,” Opinion, April 25) and it is followed up with an equally uninformed editorial (“Compromise needed in county club flap,” Editorial, April 26).

The golf course and the homes surrounding it are tied together as a unit. The city approved subdivisions around the golf course because of its existence and buyers of homes bought them for the same reason. We are not NIMBYs, we are people with actual interests in the continued preservation of the open space.

With regard to sitting down and working out some sort of compromise with the Beverly Hills developers, that would seem a nearly impossible proposition, not because we are not willing to do that, but because they have already proven they cannot be trusted. We already know they approached the city to see how they could develop the property before their purchase of the package of nonperforming loans; two of the many included ECC and Stoneridge CC in Poway. They never had an intent to operate ECC as a club, although they told the existing members they would. This was a scam to continue cash flow while they worked behind the scenes.

Bob Crowe

Escondido

Kirk Effinger (“Really? A crusade to save the Escondido Country Club?,” Opinion, April 25) portrays the residents of the Escondido Country Club as an elite class of citizens complaining because their quiet lifestyle will be disrupted. He also accuses them of trying to force the new owner of the site (Stuck in the Rough LLC) into a financially untenable position created after purchasing the property.

After retiring, my husband and I purchased our home near the Escondido Country Club four years ago. We raised our children in Escondido, attended schools and go to church in the community. We considered moving to the coast, but found that our hearts remain in this city.

We chose to live near the country club because it is a safe, charming, section of the community (neither my husband nor I golf). Our neighbors are construction workers, schoolteachers, nurses and, yes, lawyers and other professionals. The community welcomes a varied lifestyle. Many of the people living here are on a fixed income. This was to be their final home. Now, many of them are worried about the change that is about to befall their neighborhood; many of them find themselves in no position to relocate and are, as Mr. Effinger would describe, in a financially untenable position.

Anne Sanchez

Escondido

Saluting federal workers

Government employees protect and serve our nation. To honor these workers and their service, May 5-11 has been designated as Public Service Recognition Week. If you checked the weather forecast before going outside this morning, thank the federal employees at the National Weather Service who alert us to impending storms. If your child played with a toy today, thank the federal employees at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission who administer our toy safety standards. If you travel to a national park this summer, thank the park rangers who help families create lifetime memories.